Approach

Latitude combines the innovative use of technology with scientific rigour and managerial pragmatism to achieve, in partnership with all relevant stakeholders, maximum societal impact.

Latitude has developed its 'IDEAS'© approach to tackle the most complex assignments. It is a process that encompasses several steps, each supported by specific methodologies and technology (see table). IDEAS© aims not only to support sound decision-making but also to ensure that stakeholders participate throughout the process and are ready to sustain reflection and change autonomously, after the consultants have left. The 'S' of IDEAS© should therefore not be seen as a final step, but as happening throughout the process. Of course, in many cases, the client seeks assistance with only some steps of the process, while carrying out others themselves.

	Task	Methodology	Key technology *
I	Inventarise issues	Concept mapping Visualisation	Concept mapping Visio Web 2.0 tools Sensemaker LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY®
D	Develop understanding	Qualitative research Quantitative research	Nvivo (text analysis / case study database) AMOS (structural equation modelling) STATA Concept mapping Experience fellow (customer journey mapping) MLwin (multi-level statistics) Pass (statistical power analyis) Dragon speech recognition Sensemaker
E	Explore the horizon	Scenario planning Dynamic systems modelling	Actifeld Vensim
A	Assess options and decide	Multicriteria analysis Monte Carlo Analysis Decision trees Real options Sensitivity analysis	DEFINITE @risk Precision tree Real options SLS Toprank
S	Share and sustain	Communities of Practice	Web 2.0 tools

IDEAS© approach
* for some software a licence fee may have to be applied to cover the use of the software / technology for commercial purposes

RAPID© workshop

IDEAS© is especially useful to tackle highly sensitive issues, where the consequences of wrong decisions can be extremely dire. It is a process that requires time and hence is not suited to urgent, crisis-like situations. For such instances, Latitude has developed an alternative approach called 'RAPID'©.

RAPID© refers to 'Repeated Assistance with Participatory Idea-generation and Decision-making'©. It consists of a series of consecutive participatory workshops, each of which deepens aspects uncovered in a previous workshop, until the point is reached where concrete action can be taken by (groups of) individuals. Each workshop itself covers roughly the same phases as the IDEAS© approach, representing a whole cycle of inquiry.

RAPID© makes use only of what participants can bring to the workshops (hence being inherently subjective) and relies on instant visualisation of what is discussed. A key technology to facilitate this is Visio, but less high-tech means such as pinboards and special cardboard cards (see picture) are also used as well as LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY®.

Latitude also supports the implementation processes that follow the IDEAS© and RAPID© approaches. In the former, the 'sharing and sustaining' component guarantees a smooth transition from recommendations to implementation. As to the latter, the intense and focused participatory process generates solid commitment for action plans and ensuing implementation.